Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base New Orleans, Louisiana

Military Mission

Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base (NAS JRB) New Orleans is approximately seven miles southwest of New Orleans in the Upper Plaquemines Parish community of Belle Chasse, Louisiana. The base is one of only two joint reserve bases in the country, lying between the Mississippi River and the Intercoastal Waterway. Highway 23, directly east of the base, serves as the single major north/south transportation access route through the Parish.

The 4,900-acre base is home to ten separate command units supporting services for the Air Force, Army, Navy, Marines, Coast Guard, and Louisiana Air National Guard. The base provides a training ground for an array of fighter aircraft and maintains a 24-hour operational capability to support launches and recoveries of U.S. Coast Guard Sea-Air Rescue, U.S. Customs Alert, and the 159th Fighter Group. NAS JRB New Orleans also fills a crucial training need in close proximity to open water training ranges and provides a strategic location for emergency responses near the Mississippi River delta (e.g., Hurricane Katrina rescue and evacuation) and the City of New Orleans.

Joint Land Use Study Planning Process

A significant amount of land to the northwest, west and south of NAS JRB New Orleans is undeveloped. Development of this land, supported by the Peters Road Bridge Extension project near the southwest corner of the installation, could have adverse impacts on base operations if developed in an incompatible manner. In addition, the Navy has proposed a 2,000-foot runway extension resulting in new noise contours and revised Accident Potential Zones outside the base boundary.

The Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Installations and Facilities) nominated NAS JRB New Orleans for a Joint Land Use Study (JLUS) in September 2007. Plaquemines Parish served as the study sponsor, forming the JLUS Policy and Technical Committees composed of representatives from Plaquemines and Jefferson Parishes, the New Orleans Regional Planning Commission, Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, private land owners, business operators, and NAS JRB New Orleans command staff. The JLUS was completed in March 2011.

Implementation Strategy

The JLUS report includes eight resolutions and multiple recommendations including:

Establishment of a Military Influence Planning District (MIPD) and Overlay Zoning District;